Milwaukee County gets new parks director

Virginia man replaces Sue Black as parks director

John Dargle Jr. had never set foot in Milwaukee until interviewing for the job he formally landed Thursday — Milwaukee County parks director.

Nonetheless, the 49-year-old former head of the Fairfax County, Va., Parks Authority spoke enthusiastically about transplanting his family here and starting fresh in a diverse city with an impressive park system, albeit one in need of some attention.

"I was looking for a change," Dargle said when asked why he'd left a job with a much larger park system and bigger budget. He'll also get about $20,000 less in pay here.

However, with a salary of around $140,000, Dargle will instantly move to the ranks of the top-paid Milwaukee County managers.

Milwaukee County's park system has "more of an urban setting" than Fairfax County's and "more of a grounded, grass-roots community," Dargle said at Kosciuszko Park on Milwaukee's south side, where County Executive Chris Abele announced the appointment.

Fairfax County lies just outside Washington D.C. and includes the city of Arlington. It has one of the highest per capita household incomes in the U.S. at nearly $106,000, according to demographic information listed by the county.

Dargle said he and his wife had always dreamed of planting roots in a community like Milwaukee.

Dargle was picked after a national search. While at Fairfax County, his system won a national Gold Medal Award for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management. He also directed the Athens-Clarke County, Ga., parks system, as well as systems in Fort Smith, Ark., and Mecklenburg County, N.C.

He also flew a helicopter while in the U.S. Army during the Persian Gulf War.

Dargle has a bachelor's degree in recreation and leisure studies from the State University of New York at Cortland.

Dargle abruptly resigned from his Fairfax County position in April after about five years on the job. He cited personal reasons for his resignation, according to an article in the Reston, Va., Patch website.

William Bouie, chairman of the Fairfax County Parks Authority Board, declined to comment Thursday on Dargle's departure other than to wish him good luck in Milwaukee.

A news release issued by the Fairfax parks system April 1 said during Dargle's tenure, two park bond referendums were approved and the authority had "weathered the fiscal challenges linked to the recession."

The Fairfax County Parks Authority's $65 million annual operating budget is funded through park revenue, which accounts for about 60% of the total, and county taxes cover the rest, said Judy Pedersen, a spokeswoman for the authority.

About 42% of Milwaukee County's $42 million parks budget for 2013 is funded through park revenue from golf, pools and other fees. Property taxes account for 58%.

Dargle said he began researching Milwaukee County parks a couple of months ago after seeing an ad by an executive head-hunting firm listing the parks director position. The county hired Affion Public, a Pennsylvania firm,for help in searching for a new parks director.

Abele said the county had received 78 applications, including that of interim Parks Director Jim Keegan. Keegan will stay on after Dargle starts work next month.

Dargle succeeds the high-profile Sue Black as Milwaukee County parks director. Abele fired her last August for undisclosed reasons. She now owns the Milwaukee Wave soccer team.

Abele deflected a question on Black's firing at the Dargle news conference.

"This is an upside, good news story — and I feel good about it," Abele said.

Dargle's appointment requires County Board confirmation.

County Board Chairwoman Marina Dimitrijevic said it was about time Abele got around to filling the parks director slot and other high-level vacancies. The county budget director and facilities management director jobs remain open.

About Steve Schultze

Schultze joined the Milwaukee Journal staff in 1985, covering state government and politics from the paper's state capitol bureau in Madison. He also served as Madison bureau chief for five years. Following the Journal-Sentinel merger in 1995, Schultze shifted to the paper's investigative/enterprise team, where he co-authored series on abusive teachers in the Milwaukee Public Schools, influence peddling in the administration of Gov. Tommy Thompson and shortcomings of a $3 billion regional sewer system upgrade. In 2007, he began covering Milwaukee County government. Schultze is a graduate of the University of Colorado School of Journalism.